


This House is Our House

by AlwaysLera



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Friendship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-09-02
Updated: 2016-09-02
Packaged: 2018-08-12 12:38:26
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,006
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7934845
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AlwaysLera/pseuds/AlwaysLera
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Albus Severus and Scorpius aren't enemies. But they might be friends.</p>
            </blockquote>





	This House is Our House

**Author's Note:**

> I can't believe I did this.

The hiccup in the corner dormer was a dead giveaway. It was not that Scorpius was listening for it, but it was hard to miss. It was hard to miss in the Great Hall too. Scorpius felt like someone had let him up for air after he’d nearly drowned when the Sorting Hat sang out _Slytherin!_ to everyone watching. Some of them had scowled at him, but his grandmother had told him never to mind them. She said they’d come around if he kept his head down, did his work, and didn’t follow in his father’s footsteps in anything other than House. So it wasn’t that he was happy to be in the dungeon house dormitory. He just didn’t want to be the kid sending an owl home with the wrong color seal on the envelope. His mother would survive. His dad was the king of the silent treatment though.

            The kid in the corner though, by the ceiling leak because it’d been the last bed available and because he was short and kind of scrawny, even by Malfoy standards, he’d pulled the short stick. His family owl had been nagging him all through dinner but he’d shooed it away. Owls didn’t come all the way down here by choice, and his certainly didn’t want to follow him. He hadn’t sent an owl home. The older kids had messed with his unruly dark hair. They’d stolen his glasses and stepped on the edge of his robes which touched the wet stone stairs down here.

            Scorpius knew it wasn’t right. The boy in the corner, his father was a legend. And he was legendary. Half the Slytherin House’s parents were in jail because of this kid’s father and his father’s best friend. And this kid by all accounts should have been a Gryffindor. He’d seen the boy’s older brother scowl and stomp up to the red and gold tower instead of consoling the boy.

            Another sniffle from the corner.

            The sound of blankets being kicked off.

            A flick of the wand and a soft voice saying, _Lumos._ A glow behind the green curtains surrounding the bed.

            The sound of pages turning.

            Scorpius willed himself to stay in bed. But he remembered his grandmother kissing his forehead. “You get to make your own path, darling. You make the House. The House does not make you.”

            He kicked off his blankets and swung his legs out of bed, finding his slippers in the dark. He grabbed his wand and shuffled across the quiet dark room. He didn’t know if he should knock on one of the bed posts or what. He shifted on his feet. “Hey.”

            The light behind the curtain trembled. “I’m sorry.”

            Scorpius blinked at the inky darkness. “For what?”

            The curtain pulled back a bit and the boy stared at him. “Did I wake you up?”

            His cheeks were streaked with tears and his eyes were red-rimmed, even by the dull light of his wand, but on his lap was one of Scorpius’s favorite books, _The Lantern at the Bottom of the Lake (Bexley Twins #41)._

            “Have you read it?” blurted Scorpius, pointing at the book.

            The boy’s mouth turned upwards in the corners. “It’s my favorite. I can’t wait for #50 to come out. I can’t believe it’s a whole two months to find out what happened at the top of Elf Mountain.”

            He scooted backwards and gestured with his wand, making the room go light and dark and light again. “I’m--.”

            “Albus Severus Potter,” said Scorpius, sliding on the bed and tucking his legs underneath him. He hesitated and then said, “ _Lumos_ ,” flicking his wand a little bit so it cast a light too. When he saw Albus’s striken face, Scorpius said, “I’m Scorpius. Malfoy.”

            Albus blinked, and for a moment, Scorpius thought that he’d tell him to leave, but then Albus shook his head and pointed his wand at the book. “I’m just at the part of when Naomi and Joe find the Merchief.”

            “Oh snaps,” whispered Scorpius. “It’s about to go down.”

            Albus grinned, his tears clearing from his eyes. “I could read it aloud if you want.”

            “Yeah!” Scorpius whispered. He scooted closer, holding his wand toward the page so Albus could see better.

            And so Albus read the book they both nearly knew by heart, his voice wavering and then getting stronger and more confident as he read Naomi battling the Merchief, Joe running out of gillyweed, and the Merpeople trying to use wands underwater. They managed not to laugh, too loud, or stay up, too late, and when they finished the chapter, Albus neatly tucked a picture of his family between the pages and closed the book.

            “Another chapter tomorrow night?” asked Scorpius.

            Albus nodded. “And when _The Basilik of Elf Mountain_ comes out, we should just skip class.” He leaned forward conspiratorially and said, “Professor Longbottom gave me keys to the greenhouse. He said it was in case I needed to use a mandrake on James.”

            Scorpius laughed and then clapped a hand over his mouth when another first year told them to shut up. “Whoops,” he whispered to Albus. “Hey. Sit next to me in Potions tomorrow?”

            Albus’s eyes lit up. “Yeah. That’ll be good. But don’t blame me if you turn green or sprout wings or something.”

            “Pretty sure you can’t do that with potions,” Scorpius pointed out.

            “Guess we’ll find out tomorrow,” Albus said, a tiny smile on his tiny face with his too big eyes.

            Scorpius nodded and then slid out of bed, finding his slippers again to pad back across to his bed. He was halfway across the room when Albus made a _psst_ noise at him. “Hey.”

            Scorpius turned, and Albus flashed him a big smile. “Thanks.”

            Then he let the curtain fall and the light of his wand blinked out, leaving Scorpius in darkness. Scorpius decided tomorrow he’d ask Albus if he needed help writing home since he too needed to go to the Owlery. It’d be easier with a friend.

 

 


End file.
